Living the Veg-Life

Celebrate World Vegan Month with apps to help make the transition.

Whether for health, compassion or environmental reasons, a growing number of people are making the transition to a vegan lifestyle. Vegans refrain from eating meat and foods that contain animal byproducts such as dairy. For those looking to adopt this lifestyle or even just learn more about it during World Vegan Month, there are plenty of ways technology can help.

Those looking to test the waters can try 21-Day Vegan Kickstart. This app lays out a three-week plan that includes suggested recipes, shopping lists, and tips to help users branch out and design vegan diets that best fit their lifestyles, making the vegan transition as easy as possible.

The grocery store can be a challenge for the newly vegan, so the Animal-Free app will come in handy. With its built-in barcode scanner that checks products for undesirable ingredients, users can avoid purchasing items only to find out they can’t eat them.

When on-the-go, on vacation or simply in the mood to try something new, individuals can use HappyCow’s interactive map as a useful tool for finding vegan-friendly local businesses or nearby health food stores. Popular foodie app Urbanspoon also lets users search for nearby restaurants that offer or feature vegan dishes. Even food trucks are switching gears and offering vegan fare on four wheels. With Roaming Hunger Food Truck Finder, individuals can track down food truck locations, identify their business hours and scan their menus for any vegan-friendly options.

Along with their vegan food choices, many vegans reject businesses that test products on animals. Cruelty-Free lists more than 200 U.S. and Canadian companies that don’t test ingredients, formulations or finished products on animals.